Reading this blog post by Sanford (N.C.) Herald reporter Jonathan Owens about his grandfather, M.L. Owens, reminded me of my own visits with “M.L.” I have a few pieces of his pottery — I wish I had more. I particularly like his salt glaze pottery.
He was, indeed, a true character. He could be a bit gruff and then regale his listener with some remarkably funny stories all in the space of a few minutes.
Unpretentious, individualistic, a skilled artisan.
I’ve read that he added the “s” to the family name, but I don’t know the story behind that. But he is part of a whole family of related Owen/Owenses that loom tall in any history of North Carolina pottery as pioneers and who continue the tradition today.